Adam has always given his all, in every aspect of his life. As a student-athlete Adam led by example in the classroom and on the court. The results of his efforts produced excellence in both areas. It serves him today as a technology architect for the Cerner Corporation, based in his hometown of Kansas City. Adam’s greatest quality might be that he is a winner. But he has a way of taking that quality to another level. Adam also makes all those whom he is around winners. Whatever it takes, Adam finds a way for his teams to succeed.
A graduate of North Kansas City (Mo.) High School, Adam came to Drury in the fall of 2005 with one goal. In college, just as in high school, he wanted to continue to be part of a winning program. As is his nature he would do whatever was asked to accomplish that goal. That is exactly what he and his Drury teams did over the next three years.
Why three years? On January 10, 2009 Adam’s career came to a sudden end. He suffered a torn ACL in his right knee just before halftime of a 80-71 victory at Saint Joseph's. He was lost for the season, thus ending the brilliant four-year career for a player “who brought a blue-collar mentality and non-stop effort to the table during his time as a Panther” (Drury release: Jan. 13, 2009). At the time Adam was his team’s leading rebounder and was third on the squad in scoring. More importantly, the Panthers were 11-4 at the time. The team went 2-10 after that and finished the year 13-14.
The previous three years the Panthers were 21-9 (2005-06), 21-9 (2006-07) and 25-6 (2007-08). In the minds of many Adam was THE key ingredient to the success enjoyed by Panthers from 2005-09. At the minimum, he was the common thread. The overall win-loss record for that three-year period was 67-24. Each of those Panther teams qualified for the NCAA-II Great Lakes Regional Tournament and in 2008 the Panthers won their first-ever Great Lakes Valley Conference Championship. The 2007 and 2008 teams were nationally-ranked in the NCAA-II Top Ten.
Adam would be the first to state that teammates like Drury Hall of Famers Brandon Kimbrough and Collins Harris were the reasons for the success they all enjoyed. He would also single out players like Steven Gum and the talents of his classmates, Tim Brown and Chris Ijames, for any and all success. But there was one person who was a common denominator in that three-plus string of winning basketball. Adam White.
While he could do it all, his focus was always the same. Win. He could score, as evidenced by his 700-plus points and 20 point career-high game versus Rollins (Dec. 18, 2007). He could rebound, as evidenced by the several games in which he grabbed an even dozen. In fact, he led the Panthers in rebounding in 24 of his last 45 games played. He could shoot. He led the 2007-08 Panthers in field goal percentage hitting better than 52 percent of his attempts.
But it is his Drury head coach, Steve Hesser, who put it the best. “Adam is one of the best competitors to ever play at Drury. He was a “lock down” defender who had the ability to guard four positions. His competitive spirit was something that was infectious with his teammates. He was humble enough to do the little things that don’t show up in the stat lines to help his team win. He was a great teammate. He could score but that was not his primary responsibility while he was at Drury. It was his will, his competitiveness, his desire to be a great teammate that separated him from others.”
Adam earned his Bachelor of Arts with a major in Advertising on May 16, 2009. He earned his Master of Arts in Communication degree from Drury two years later, May 14, 2011. The son of Walter and Jeri White, both of whom are here today along with other friends and family, the highest praise comes yet again from his head coach, Steve Hesser. He has stated more than once: “Adam White is one of the nicest young men to ever play at Drury.”
